Sign or signal for calling cabs.



. Patented Aug.` 7, |900.

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I lnllll n... www3 Q NVE/V709 A NE Ys A. G. n. mcHoL... SIGN 0B SIGNAL FUR CALLING CABS. (Application led Sept. 1, 1899.)

Tn: Nomm Pzvzns co.. Puonumo.. WASHINGTON. n. a

(No Moda.)

W/TNESSES UNITED 4STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR GEORGE RAVVLINGS NICHOL, 'OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

sIGN R SIGNAL FOR CALLING CABS.

srncirrcnrronrormmg me of Letters Patent, No. 655,264, dated August '7, 1900.. i

Application tiled September l., 1899. Serial No. 'YZIIQ- (No model.)

To all` whom itV may concern: A Be it-known that I, ARTHUR GEORGE RAW- LINGS NCHOL, of the city of New York, bor-,

ough of Manhattan, in the county and State of New Yorkhav`e invented certain newand useful Improvements in Signs or Signals for Calling Cabs, of which the following is a full,

clear, and exact description.

Myinvention relates to signs or signals, and has for its object to provide a simple and con- Venient means whereby a clerk in Va hotel or theater may call .several cabs or other carriages successively or simultaneously; but'it will be understood that such a device maybe used for other` purposes as well. v

The invention will `be fully described hereinafter, and thefeatures of novelty pointedA out in the claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification,

' in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure lis a front elevation of my improved Fig. 2 is a broken sectional sign or signal. plan thereof. Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view of the sign, the switchboard, andthe wi ring;

-and Fig. Il shows one of the sets of plugs,

adapted foruse in conjunction with the switchboard.

The improved sign or signal consists of a box or casing A, having compartments A, arranged. in superposed rows, (three rows, as shown,) and each row has its compartments numbered successively from 1 to 0. The front of each compartment is either aperturedy transparent, or translucent, so that light may be visible therethrough, and, as shown, the frontfc'onsists of a glass pane B, in

which the numerals B' are produced by etching or grinding. The opposite side or back may be constructed in the same manner. In

each compartment is arranged a series of inplates for which they are intended. To furvcandescent lamps, three in the specic case blue.

The wiring is as follows: One terminal of each lamp is connected, as by wires a, to one I pole of a dynamo or other source of electricity. Instead of employing wires o, the

lamp-socketsmight be screwed intoa common metallic base, sothat one terminal of each lamp would be in contact with the base, which latter would be connected withthe dynamo. The other terminal of each lamp is connected by a wire, such`as b, with the switchboard E, which may be located at any suitable place for instance, the switchboard may be located in' the oiiice, while the sign is placed in front of the hotel. The switchboard isv providedwith a seriesV of contactplates E', two for each lamp, the plates belonging to `the same` lamp being placed so close together that they may be connected electrically by the insertion of conductingplugs between them. To distinguish the contact plates fromeac'h'otheigthe werds Red,

White, and Blue may be produced adjacent to them, or the plates may be painted in the colors corresponding to those of the lam s connected therewith. OneAcontact-plate of each set of two is connected by one of the wires b withlone terminal of the corresponding electric lamp 0,0', or C2 and the other contact-plate is connected by a Wire,such as c, with the other pole of the dynamo or other source of electricity.

The plugs E may all `be of the usual cylindrical or slightly-conical shape;`but I consider it preferable that plugs intended'to insertA into the circuit lamps of different colors should be differently made, so as to prevent mistakes. Thus, for instance, all the plugs for the central white lamps might be circular in cross-section, while the plugs for theblue ther guard against mistakes, I consider it advisable to connect plugs of like shape by a string G or the like, as shown in Fig. 1l. This will assist the operator in properly inserting the plugs and will prevent him from leaving IOS some of the plugs in by inadvertence, since y the entire set must be removed before the `connecting-string G can be taken off the switchboard E.

The operation is as follows: Suppose it is desired4 to call cab 111. The clerk takes one of the (three) vsets of (three) connected plugs F and inserts them in the irstvertical column of the switchboard. These plugs williit the contact-plates connected with lamps-of one color only-say red-as indicated. `It fol-lows that the red lamps C in three compartments A', bearing the numeral 1, will be-lighted, thereby calling cab `111. It will be understood that the upper row is for units, thesecond for tens,and the bottom row for hundreds, y or the 'reverse arrangement may be used.

Now supposing two cabs are to 'be 'called at the same time-say 232 in addition to 111.-

The operator ywill then take the second set'of plugs F, and-as they are of a different shape from the plugs of the other set he cannot makethe mistake of inserting them, so as to light-lamps of thewrong color-that is, of the same color (red) as for the first set. By inserting these plugs, as indicated in Fig. 3,- the numbers 423.2 will be illuminated, say, in

white, thereby calling cab 232 in addition to the-color ofthe light would be modified, so

that itwould be easy tosee that the same unit gurebelonged to both cabs called. It will, however, be obvious that in such a case the figure in common to both numbers mightbe belonging to the same seriesV are` connected there is `little danger of 'the operator overlooking to remove some of the pl ugs,and thereby callin ga cab unintentionally.

To the sign or signal hereinbefore described might be added a series of lamps to light the words Cab, Hansom, Coach, or Au.

tomobile. The electrical arrangements for suchfpurpose being well known, I have not Ydeemed it necessary to show them.

Having thus described my invention,l I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- Y,

The herein-described sign or signal, comprising a box or casin g divided into compartments of approximately-equal size arrangedv in superposed rows, each compartment being provided with a distinguishing character, a plurality of dierently-colored electric lamps in .each compartment, lam ps ofa like color occupying the same relative positions in `all the compartments, a switchboard having aseries of switches or circuit-closers, one for each lamp, and connections from the switchboard to the lamps.

ARTHUR GEORGE RAWLINGS NlCllOli Witnesses: l

DANIEL C. BRENAN, j JOHN LorKA. 

